Majestic Study - Being Foreign Law Student in France

By the time the French President announced the lockdown on March 16th that the country was going under a two-week lockdown, we had actually been preparing for it for over two weeks. We started preparing ourselves for self-isolation from the beginning of the month of March. As a result, we did not have to buy a lot of food and supplies last minute, which allowed us to get everything we needed even before people started to shop massively. Here are two reasons why we were able to do so. 1. We were listening to foreign media On a daily basis, we obtain information from multiple media and worldwide. For example, we usually follow the Japanese media and the BBC. We want to be informed about what is happening in Japan because our families live there and we listen to English media in order to work on our English language competence. We heard about the panic-buying that was happening in Japan concerning masks and paper products. Also, the BBC has thoroughly reported the situa...

It's confinement Day 12. It must be a long time not to see your girlfriend or boyfriend for those of you who don't live together.  I had been in a long-distance relationship with my boyfriend before we started to live together. Back then, he lived in France and I was in Japan. We met each other in person about five times in three years.  My tips might be useful for you if you cannot see your partner in person during this difficult time. 1. Respect each other's work time Your free time is not his or her free time. Just because your partner can't talk to you at that particular moment, it does not mean that he or she does not want to do so.  In this day and age, we can always contact each other anytime anywhere. However, it doesn't mean that the person is always available for you, even he or she is working from home.  You might say, "Yeah, sure, but can't he or she spare 2 minutes to respond to my message?"  The answer is he or s...

I have written about my French learning timeline in this article . This time, I will tell you a little about my English learning timeline. 10 years-old : I went to the MA, USA with my mother for her job. She worked at an institution attached to a university. I was placed in a local public elementary school (not international nor Japanese school). Middle school : I went back to Japan. I learned English at school (a public school) with other Japanese students. I also went to English conversation class twice a week so that I wouldn't forget it. Eiken Grade 2. High school : I went to a public high school. During my Junior year, I went to the States again as an exchange student for 10 months. I was placed in a public school in WI, USA. Eiken Grade Pre 1 and 1. Nothing much since then . I had English classes at my university twice a week for the first two years. I took some courses in English. I taught some high school students English as a private tutor (made decent mon...

I could have gone home to Japan but I stayed.  Two weeks ago, the French government decided that all the universities would be closed in order to slow the propagation of the Coronavirus in the population. It was recommended by the Ministry of Education that international students go back to their countries if the trip was possible. Despite the situation, I decided to stay in France and here are 5 reasons why. 1. We didn't know how long the confinement was going to be At the beginning of the confinement, we did not know how long the confinement was going to be (and we still don't as a matter of fact). The government planned it for two weeks minimum. If I were to go back home and then confinement actually ended at the end of the two weeks, it would be too busy to do a round trip in such a short period.  Also, I was afraid that I would be subjected to confinement of two weeks in arrival to Japan. If that were the case, I would lose that time in a situation that i...

It's Day 9 of confinement in France. It was another beautiful day: sunny and not too cold. I woke up around 6:30 am as usual. Then I made my bed, ate breakfast, changed the air, and planned my day. I habitually use Google calendar and a notebook to plan what I should do.  Calendar Blocking Method I use a method called "calendar blocking" by Amy Landino introduced on her YouTube channel,  Amy Landino . It consists of blocking a block of time for doing a category of tasks, you will have your own time table of your work and your daily tasks, like when you are back in school. Whatever you do will be on your calendar: shopping, eating, exercise, work, study, cleaning, ... She recommends in her video using a digital calendar because it gives more flexibility to your day (because nothing goes according to plan, right?).  Here's an example of mine from today. You get the idea.  I reserved time for a couple of my courses today to work on the course ma...

Today was a reading day. I read an anthology of short stories written by a Japanese author Yoko Ogawa (not Yoko Ono) and half of a law-related book. The latter is not directly related to my studies but I had bought it because it seems interesting while I was back in Japan last summer. I had been too busy with my studies in French university since the beginning of this academic year that I haven't had a chunk of time dedicated to the book to get through it until now. I finally have some time to read it now due to confinement.  The book is called International Criminal Tribunal by NGOs by Professor Akira Maeda and I started reading it from the beginning because I didn't remember exactly where I was in the book. It is very interesting and I cannot wait to read the whole book. Some parts could be used as revisions of my international public law course. But what I'm doing in classes are basics and it was introduced as fundamental notions to help the author to carry...

This is Day 7 of confinement.  Today, I basically worked all day. I prepared for a class that was supposed to happen this week. The answers will be published on the university online platform and we can ask questions to the professor there so I was preparing for that. In order to do so, I read multiple textbooks, some summaries and articles of doctrine in order to understand the law cases that were assigned to study (thus, I had to read cases). I've started preparing it last week but it has been hard to concentrate because emails keep coming in to give us instructions on various courses. It's hard to keep track of what to do and by when.  However, today, I was productive. I was able to concentrate and find my own rhythm of work. I set small goals in my journal and then took them off of my to-do list as the day went. Also, I was actually motivated to start new things since my mind is calmer than last week due to the fact we know more about the situation and know mor...

According to the Nikkei Asian Review (see the article in English  here ), the Japanese government decided that travelers from the United States will be asked to quarantine at home or at a hotel for 14 days upon arrival in Japan. You will be asked not to use any public transportation: trains, buses, airplanes... If you were to arrive at the airport in Tokyo for example and then you were planning to fly to another city with a domestic line, you'll be stuck at the airport that you arrived at. Your transit flight will have to be canceled. This measure will continue until the end of April (as of March 22, 2020). According to the Asahi newspaper, the location (whether at your home or in a hotel) will be appointed by the head of the quarantine station at the arriving airport but the details are not yet announced (see the article in Japanese  here ). The problem? How are you supposed to get home or get to your hotel without using public transportation? No instructions so far......

It's Day 6 of the confinement.  A French newspaper, Le Monde, reported the situations of foreign students in France in the Coronavirus crisis. Foreign students were recommended to go back to their home country if possible and some went back. But some stayed due to the rise of airplane tickets resulting from multiple cancelations as well as because of the fact that they risk being put into quarantine at their arrival in their own country.  As the article reports, many of them are stuck in a small room without classes to go to, friends to talk to or jobs from which they can make money. Most of the French students have the possibility of going back to their parents' house during this lockdown, but not all foreign students can do so. This is a very hard time for us who study abroad in France. If you are interested in reading more about it (and if you can read French), here is the article. "Tout d'un coup, c'est le vide" : loin de leurs famille...

Universities have closed due to the Coronavirus and many of them are switching to online teaching to ensure the continuity of the education. My university in France is one of them. However, my university, a public university in rural France, does not have the IT infrastructure to implement this substitutional education, at least not immediately. Some professors have been sending their lecture notes via emails or trying to engage a discussion and corrections of exercises on the famous educational platform called Moodle (yes, that exists in France, too). But as I am seeing how it's being done at the moment, I have some suggestions for professors who want to continue teaching online while universities are closed. 1. All the students might not have the means to participate Again, our school is a public university. Public universities do not charge tuition for the education that they offer. Although many scholarships are put in place and it's very common these day...

Another somewhat productive day has passed. In the morning, I worked on my translation job for 3 hours and we had an early lunch at around 11 am. Then I watched a couple of episodes of the Netflix series "13 Reasons Why" (yes, I know that I'm totally late for the party). I made it to Episode 4 of Season 1 (so no spoilers, please). In the afternoon, I studied special contracts law: I mostly did the reading from textbooks and other sources.  "13 Reasons Why" makes me think about a lot of things, as it did for many other people. It not only addresses the problem of sexual harassment toward women (and especially toward young teenage girls) but also the harm of homosocial pressure amongst men.  I did go to an American high school for a year and it reminds me of those days as well, parts of it that were good and bad.  The high school that I went for a one-year exchange was a very small school in the Midwest, USA. Of course, the exchange program organ...

So, it is the second day of confinement in France. I was pretty productive today. I finished one of my translation works and I started another one. Honestly, I wouldn't have had the time to do them if the university was not closed. Also, I responded to some emails relating, again, to my work, which I had been putting off for some time. We still have not gone outside since Monday morning. Being inside all the time does not really bother us because we are kind of two workaholics living under the same roof. My partner and I worked until around six o'clock and then we did some physical exercise before making dinner. We watched a movie after eating and got back to work: #workaholics. I might go outside for a run tomorrow. Tell me about your day! I'm working on a video on how I work on my notes for law classes. Stay tuned if you are interested. Thank you always for reading. Stay healthy!

(Sorry, forgot to post last night, so I'm posting this article today, which is Day 2 of confinement.) As the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, announced, we are going under the confinement of at least 2 weeks in order to slow the propagation of the Coronavirus. Great! I guess...? In his discourse last night,  it was clear that the decision was taken due to the fact people are going to parks and markets despite the recommendation from the government to refrain from going out and gathering with friends and family members. Earlier in the day, the news showed people getting together in parks and markets in Paris to show the "resistance" to the President's order to stay inside (or maybe just to enjoy the sun?). Some bars and restaurants decided not to follow the orders, too. So, the consequence is severe. Now, we cannot go out without a written document certifying that we need to go grocery shopping, go to the pharmacy, see a doctor, etc.  It ma...

It looks so nice and peaceful outside despite all the things that are going on... Thanks for coming back to my blog! So, like all other universities in France, my school closed due to the virus situation. There has been a rumor that it would happen soon but it was announced on Thursday, and just like that it's closed now. Our professors have not had the time to hold a meeting on how to ensure the continuity of our education and we are still in the dark about how our classes and exams will be. This week, there were several mid-terms planned but, of course, they have been postponed sine die . We have been accumulating food and supplies for over three weeks now, and we are ready to lock ourselves in if needed. It will be a great time to revise for my upcoming exams (if they ever come, of course) and I'm intending to make good use of the time we have.  I'll keep you updated on how we are doing in France. And please share your experience as well. Be safe!